Walter vying with as-yet-undetermined rival

Andrew Walter rolled out of the pocket, running right, cutting left and doing all he could to beat out the player to be announced for the Raiders' starting-quarterback job.

Maybe it'll be LSU's JaMarcus Russell, the current favorite to be drafted first overall by Oakland on April 28. Perhaps Walter will compete with Lions backup Josh McCown, who is reported to be the object of recent trade negotiations between Oakland's Al Davis and Detroit's Matt Millen.

For now, it's Walter vs. self at the team's first offseason minicamp, which started Tuesday with only two other unproven quarterbacks (Josh Booty and Jeff Otis) on hand.

Walter has two more days of full-pace practice to persuade first-year coach Lane Kiffin what he really needs to do is acquire a backup quarterback, not a starter.

"Absolutely, I go in there thinking that I'm going to be the man," Walter said. "Right now, I'm taking all the reps so it's a great opportunity for me to get used to the schemes that we're putting in and try to get on top of what the coaches are asking me to do."

That won't be easy for Walter, a third-year player who started eight games last season. Known as a pocket passer with a strong arm, he spent the late stages of practice Tuesday running designed rollouts -- not exactly his strength.

Rollouts are one of the first signatures to emerge from Kiffin's evolving offense, so Walter must adapt. If not, a mobile quarterback -- say, Russell -- could be a better fit for an offense with a moving pocket.

That's a stark change from last year's offense, the worst in terms of scoring and yardage in team history. The playbook offered little room for maneuvering outside the tackles, one reason Walter was sacked 46 times.

"That's our system," Kiffin said. "We have to get guys better at what they don't do very well in the system. He's getting better. He's competing right now to be the starter."

For now, Kiffin can compare Walter to no one. Aaron Brooks and Marques Tuiasosopo are no longer with the team. Until another quarterback is drafted or signed, Walter is trying to show coaches he's better than last season's tape indicates.

Walter went through the wondering game last offseason, when the Raiders were rumored to be interested in draft prospects Vince Young and Matt Leinart. Walter said he didn't worry then, and he won't worry now.

"That's a front-office decision, not mine," Walter said. "They're going to get somebody who's going to compete every day. As far as anything else, it does not concern me."

Visit list: Russell is scheduled to visit the Raiders in the near future, Kiffin said without giving a specific date.

Jordan vents: Running back LaMont Jordan is recovering from a season-ending injury. His postseason pay cut still smarts.

Jordan agreed last month to take a $3 million roster bonus, instead of the $4.75 million he was due, to avoid the likelihood of getting cut. He thought about testing the free-agent market but stuck with the sure money -- like it or not.

"It was pretty much take a pay cut or be released," Jordan said. "Make no mistake about it: I'm not happy about it all. But really, at this point, there's nothing I could do about it."

Jordan's season ended Nov. 19 with a left knee injury. He recently started running and expects to be ready for training camp. He will compete with free-agent pickup Dominic Rhodes for the starting job, Kiffin said.

Briefly: Randy Moss did not attend the voluntary workout, but Kiffin said he has spoken with the wide receiver in the past two weeks. Kiffin expects Moss to attend a mandatory minicamp after the draft. ... Barry Sims and Robert Gallery alternated between right and left tackle, which they will continue to do until a left-side starter is determined, Kiffin said.